Fighting fire with water
George H. Potter
Fire Safety Instructor
ITSEMAP Iberica
Madrid, Spain
The “fighting fire with water” debate presents a complicated problem with no clear-cut solution. Having fought fires in the late `50s and through the `60s with smooth-bore and early “mystery” nozzles, I feel that the evolution to today`s combination nozzles has greatly enhanced firefighters` capabilities and versatility in getting their job done.
Smooth-bore nozzles do have longer reach and more impact for penetration into the seat of a fire. These are advantageous when protecting or cooling exposures from a relatively “safe” distance or reaching an unaccessible roof, etc.
Recent developments by manufacturers have made combination nozzles very effective at lower working pressures. This type of nozzle is much more versatile and flexible than the smooth-bore nozzle; above all, the variable-flow designs offer great advantages in the gallonage range, from “flooding” high volume for initial attack through low-volume flows for small, low-intensity fires, cleanup, and overhaul operations.
In a recent course with Spanish firefighters, we had the opportunity to try out a prototype combination nozzle on 134-inch hose. The setup was 100 feet of 234-inch hose (70 millimeters) from the engine, wyed-off to two 100-foot lengths of 134-inch (45 mm.) attack lines. One of these was shut down for the exercise. Two participants (various pairs in several exercises) were able to advance and manipulate the line with no undue difficulties. Engine discharge pressure was approximately 125 psi (9 bar). Nozzle flow was estimated at 1,500 liters per minute, some 390 gpm–a reasonably adequate fire flow for an attack handline.
While it is quite true that the reach and impact force of the straight stream are slightly inferior to the solid stream, the versatility of the combination nozzle far outweighs the limitations of the smooth bore. Nonetheless, the debate will probably continue for as long as we use water to extinguish fires.
